Vignette

I just started working at the Provo City Water Sources Department. Every Morning we stop at a gas station, Mavericks. There are usually a lot of people there, getting gas for the day, buying coffee. I see coke trucks and other mechanical beasts of burden. There is a gaggle of sea gulls that circle overhead. One day a man in a taxi drove off with the pump in the tank. He stopped suddenly and ran out shaking his head to put the pump back. As we drove away, we passed a McDonalds with a DVD rental machine outside, there was already a man standing confused in front of it, getting his media fix for the day. We pass a large truck with a Lexus add on the side, a car in nature, whizzing down a country road. A car in its natural habitat. Our foul attempt to reconnect to the nature we destroy at 60 MPH. On the radio, the report talks about the recent Starbucks share holder conference, a gathering of the faithful in times of trouble. The audience erupts in applause as the CEO takes center stage and prophesies of future growth and innovation. I feel comforted that their stock has fallen 45% in the last year. The quicker the economy crashes the sooner we can get back to what matters most. The announcer’s voice explores the idea of an ethical stock market that would not invest in Sudan for example. A glossy stock broker’s voice chimes in with a sneer at how ridiculous it would be for a stock person to have to think about morals AND profits.